Since the release of mobile devices with touchscreens (e.g., iPhone and Android phone) years ago, especially the multi-touchscreen in 2007, the market for mobile games has grown substantially and is expected to continue. According to Newzoo®, a prominent global provider of games and esports analytics, mobile games in 2017 generated approximately $116 billion dollars in revenue worldwide and captured 41% of the global gaming market. They also predict mobile gaming will continue to grow and will capture more than fifty percent of the global gaming market in 2018, which surpasses revenues from conventional video game consoles and PC games combined.
While current mobile device technology provides a variety of ways to play games through touchscreen and inertial sensors, most mobile games are designed to be controlled by at most two fingers (e.g., typically thumbs of left and right hands as shown by FIG. 11). Unlike controllers for conventional game consoles or computer keyboard and mouse where there are different buttons designed for different fingers, virtually all mobile devices do not have additional button(s) designed for gaming. Thus, all controls for mobile games need to be inputted through the touchscreen, which can be difficult and not ergonomic if they require simultaneously use of multiple fingers on both hands. Such restriction severely limits the gaming development because designers are unable to implement more complex controls for their games and applications. While there are game controllers designed for mobile devices which look and function like controllers for conventional game consoles and which can be connected to mobile devices wirelessly, they are often bulky and inconvenient to carry around. Further, these controllers usually require electrical power to operate and may not be available to everyone due to the price and/or practicability, thereby making them not a viable solution to the aforementioned problems.
Accordingly, there exists a need for an improved mobile game control system that can effectively provide additional control button(s) to mobile devices and be used by mobile games and applications. There also exists a need for an improved mobile game control system that is simple and not costly to implement and space-efficient.